Uzbekistan Announces 54 Deals Worth Nearly $12bn With US Partners During Rubio Visit

Uzbekistan has announced 54 agreements and proposed projects with American partners valued at nearly $12bn (€10.7bn). The announcement followed high-level meetings in Samarkand attended by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Both countries aim to expand their strategic partnership through private investment and joint industrial projects.

Rubio met Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Monday to discuss trade, energy, critical minerals, aviation and technology. According to the Uzbek presidency, bilateral trade has risen by 35% since the start of the year, though the comparison period was not specified.

New investment priorities

Samarkand hosted the second meeting of the American-Uzbek Business and Investment Council, attended by senior officials and US business representatives. Mirziyoyev called the council an important mechanism for developing joint projects and said Uzbekistan has no such format with any other country. It is co-chaired by Saida Mirziyoyeva, head of the Uzbek Presidential Administration, and US Special Envoy Sergio Gor.

The president called for a comprehensive action plan to carry out the initiatives. He also proposed a new way of attracting investors: projects would be prepared with land, infrastructure, permits and administrative requirements already settled. Uzbek companies would be encouraged to join as partners, and a newly created direct investment fund could help finance eligible projects. Priority areas are critical minerals, renewable energy, electricity storage, data centres and artificial intelligence. Mirziyoyev also suggested a joint trade, investment and technology cooperation programme running to 2035.

Business views and companies involved

Business figures interviewed by Euronews in Samarkand saw opportunities in mining, agriculture and financial services. Quinn Martin, president of Bluestone, said his firm has been involved in three transactions with US investors over the past five months. Uzbekistan's Deputy Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade, Shokhrukh Gulyamov, said Uzbek banks are in talks with Citigroup about financing, and pointed to cooperation with Boeing on aircraft deliveries and spare parts.

The agreements span transport, energy, critical minerals, finance, digital technologies, agriculture and healthcare. Wabtec is discussing locomotive supplies, maintenance and local component production. Franklin Templeton, Oppenheimer & Co, Citigroup and BlackRock are involved in financial cooperation. In critical minerals, ReElement Technologies, Traxys and Trafigura are named, while Amazon Leo is linked to satellite communications, GE HealthCare to medical technologies and Valmont Industries to agriculture.